Dolphins fear Jake Long out for season

Posted by Josh Alper on December 2, 2012, 6:38 PM EST

AP

The Dolphins lost left tackle Jake Long in the first quarter of Sunday’s game and they fear they won’t have him back again this year.

That’s the word from both Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald and Jeff Darlington of NFL.com from Miami after the game. Long left with what was called a left triceps injury during the contest and the Dolphins are afraid he’s torn it. He’ll have an MRI on Monday, but Salguero reports that two players and a team official told him that was the working diagnosis. Darlington’s source says that “it doesn’t look good.”

If so, it could have been Long’s final game as a Dolphin. Rookie Jonathan Martin replaced Long on Sunday and would likely remain there if the worst fears are realized. That would give the Dolphins an extended evaluation of Martin’s fitness for the job, something that will come in handy with Long set to become a free agent after the season.

Long’s play hasn’t been met with many positive reviews this year, so a good showing from Martin could lead the Dolphins to go with the cheaper and younger option at left tackle.

Long has been injury prone for a while. He was outstanding the first couple years. Since his nagging injuries, he’s been good but not stellar. Unless he takes a pay cut he won’t be a Dolphin. If they knew he would be a great and reliable player they would have reworked his deal last year. They did not do that because they needed more assurance and have not really gotten any. He’s a good player but not worth what he makes or expects to make any more.

It won’t be a major factor losing Long for the season. He is definitely not the same guy they drafted in 2008. For the amount of money it would cost to bring him back, the Dolphins could have 2 Tackles and a reserve. Long hasn’t shown the dominance he once had. He also has had issues with his health, which is another huge negative.

This is the best thing that could have happened for Miami. They are out of playoff contention so now they can see if they have any O Line talent on the bench. This also makes their decision in the off season a-lot easier. Long is not close to elite and gets injured too often. I don’t think that even an elite LT is worth 13 million a season. Miami has over 30 free agents this off season and they need to spend their draft picks and cap space on playmakers.